The College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences will hold its spring commencement Saturday, May 9, at 10 a.m. in Savage Arena.
Mishoe
Among the 126 baccalaureate degree recipients, a majority will graduate with honors. Five will graduate summa cum laude, 25 will graduate magna cum laude, and 41 will graduate cum laude, along with two who will receive departmental honors and three who will receive both college and departmental honors.
Three valedictorians will speak. Jeremy Canfield, a pharmacology and toxicology major, is the valedictorian for the bachelor of science in pharmaceutical sciences class; and Carl Buchwald and Maureen Converse, valedictorians for the doctor of pharmacy class, will present a speech together.
The college will recognize Kevin Omerza, the first to earn the dual doctor of pharmacy and master’s degree in health outcomes and socioeconomic sciences, as well as Emily Crissman, Robert Farrell and Jennifer Offenbacher, the first three students to complete dual bachelor’s and master’s degrees in medicinal chemistry.
The college will confer an honorary doctor of science degree upon Rear Adm. Helena Mishoe, associate director of research training and diversity at the National Institutes of Health and National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
Her career in research and medicine has spanned decades and includes service as the assistant surgeon general of the U.S. Public Health Service. She has led initiatives to increase public awareness of sickle cell anemia, promote health education in rural areas, and improve HIV treatment in Angola, among many other achievements.
